receive
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
to experience or get a physical injury.
to incur or sustain physical damage or an injury.
Simple“The player received a serious head injury during the final minutes of the game.”
In context“The victim received multiple lacerations during the struggle, though medical examiners confirmed that none of the wounds were life-threatening.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
to officially welcome or meet guests.
to act as a host for guests or to formally admit someone into one's presence.
Simple“The ambassador will receive the visitors in the main hall at noon.”
In context“The royal family traditionally receives foreign dignitaries in the state drawing room before the commencement of the official banquet.”
- 03 B1 Intermediate
to pick up radio, television, or phone signals.
to detect or pick up electromagnetic signals from a transmitter.
Simple“We couldn't receive a clear radio signal because of the high mountains.”
In context“The satellite was designed to receive low-frequency transmissions that are often blocked by the Earth's upper atmosphere.”
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
to be the player who hits the ball back after a serve.
to be in the designated position to take possession of or return a ball served by an opponent.
Simple“She is much better at serving the ball than she is at receiving it.”
In context“The champion struggled to receive the challenger's powerful left-handed serves throughout the first set of the match.”
- 05 C1 Advanced
to take or buy items that you know were stolen.
to take possession of goods with the knowledge that they have been stolen.
Simple“He was arrested for receiving stolen jewellery from the robbery.”
In context“The defendant was charged with receiving stolen property after police discovered the missing electronics in his warehouse during a search of his warehouse.”
Synonyms
Usage receive funding · receive an email · initially receive
From Middle English receyven, from Old French receivre, from Latin recipere (“take back, accept, etc.”), from re- (“back”) + capiō (“to take”); see capacious. Compare conceive, deceive, perceive. Displaced native Middle English terms in -fon/-fangen (e.g. afon, anfon, afangen, underfangen, etc. "to receive" from Old English -fōn), native Middle English thiggen (“to receive”) (from Old English þiċġan), and non-native Middle English aquilen, enquilen (“to receive”) (from Old French aquillir, encueillir).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.